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Fist Versus Palm

In learning the jab, you must make a basic decision about what type of striking method you want to use—a palm heel or fist strike (see Figs. ssss1 and ssss1). I’ll explain both methods, since they’re both very effective. However, you should be aware that there will always be some controversy over which is better.

Let me point out the pros and cons of each—then you can decide which one you’d like to use.

When I start to teach law enforcement personnel how to strike, one of the first questions I ask is whether any of them have ever broken their hand in a fight. Usually at least 15 to 20 percent of the officers raise their hands. At least 95 percent of the officers who broke their hands broke them on duty while punching a suspect with a closed fist. While the fist is a natural weapon, one that’s formed almost unconsciously while fighting, it is easily broken in a fight.

I interviewed many of the officers who had broken their hands to see what had gone wrong. The majority of them said that the assault happened so fast that they didn’t have time to make a proper fist. Many of the officers also complained that they had never been taught formally how to make a fist.